People Strategy: Integrate Wellness into Business Performance

’Wellness’ and ‘well-being’ are no more just buzzwords for organizations. People have been increasing their awareness of self-care throughout the prevalence of the coronavirus. This epidemic raised organizations’ concerns regarding well-being, and they placed the wellness of their employees at the top of business agendas. The coronavirus pandemic forces organizations to shift their views on well-being from just “a preferable thing to have” to a “business imperative”.

Well-being as a People Strategy:

82% of organizations globally believe that well-being is important and a business essential. However, many companies have only started various well-being initiatives or programs, without any long-term strategies to achieve well-being goals.

Organizations must rethink the objectives and focus of their well-being strategies. Structured and comprehensive well-being strategies, with defined objectives, benefit an organization in improving their employees’ morale and engagement, thus improving performance and productivity, and attracting and retaining employees.

A successful wellness strategy encompasses different dimensions of well-being, which should be based on employees’ goals, interests, and opportunities for improvement. Organizations should align wellness strategies with the employees’ views and needs. The voices of employees should be reflected as critical aspects on planning wellness strategies.

Culture of Wellness:

Organizations' wellness initiatives should aim for enhancing employees’ awareness of the importance of maintaining physical and mental health, for individuals and teams, and for empowering employees to take responsibility of their personal well-being. Employees are encouraged to take action, to make changes, and to be willing to commit to sustaining the changes through a continuous journey towards their “best self”.

Organizational culture is the driver of well-being strategies. A culture of well-being is about a permanent change in how work is conducted in organizations. A leader’s impaired well-being directly influences their teams’ health and well-being. Leaders themselves should develop resilience and be healthy when facing the constant business and environmental changes, while they also pay attention to the health of their teams and provide essential supports.

Leadership support and buy-in are critical factors in creating a successful wellness strategy.

Holistic Well-being Approach:

Organizations must widen their view of wellness, and connect all the components of the employees’ wellness. These components include physical, mental, emotional, financial, and social well-being. Healthy food and exercise do more than just help individuals maintain physical wellness. The Health and Well-being at Work Survey report showed that 80% of organizations are increasingly concerned about the impact of COVID on employees’ mental health. Stress and burnout become normal circumstances among employees, and organizations should be proactive to open discussions on mental health at the workplace. Financial well-being entails supporting individuals in becoming more aware of their finances, in reducing money-related stress, and in managing their personal budget better.

Wellness programs can be perceived as a message to employees that organizations are willing to invest in their employees’ wellness, to make them more productive at work and healthier in their lives.

Deloitte’s Human Capital Trends reported that well-being must be designed as a journey of employee experience; more than simply arranging a one-off wellness event, wellness talks, a health assessment, or apps. Nowadays, organizations should integrate wellness initiatives as a part of their business operations, by providing flexitime scheduling, parental and caretaker leave, and education to leaders for understanding and addressing the well-being needs of employees.

A successful wellness strategy adopts a holistic approach, which boosts employee engagement, talent management, and organizational performance.

Employees’ well-being should be prioritized and integrated within organizations, and be embedded in culture, leadership, and people management. Wellness strategies need to be long-term action plans with specific actions that align with the visions of the organization.

Source: HD Monthly Influencer, People Strategy: Integrate Wellness into Business Performance ; authored by Lina Lam

Human Dynamic’s Wellness Consulting Services offer a combination of solutions, including Health Risk Assessment, Executive Wellness Coaching, and Wellness Education & Group Coaching, that aim to develop leaders who promote a Culture of Wellness in their organizations.